Research with adults has demonstrated an association between display of overt competition and group size. Despite the importance of this association for understanding gender-differentiated developmental models of competition, virtually no research has examined this association in children. The current research was designed to examine whether children hold cognitive models that link competitive behavior with group size. Competitive and cooperative games were described to 71 boys and 87 girls from Grades 4 and 6, and the children were asked to indicate how much they thought they would enjoy playing each game in a dyad and in a tetrad. Consistent with the hypothesis, children appraised tetrads more positively than dyads for the competitive but not the cooperative games. The implications for differential experience in varying size groups are discussed as one factor that may influence displays of overtly competitive behavior.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ahlgren, A. , & Johnson, D. W. (1979). Sex differences in cooperative and competitive attitudes from the 2nd through the 12th grades. Developmental Psychology, 15(1), 45-49.
2.
Bales, R. F. , & Borgatta, E. F. (1955). Size of group as a factor in the interaction profile. In A. P. Hare, E. F. Borgatta, & R. F. Bales (Eds.), Small groups: Studies in social interaction (pp. 495-512). Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Random House.
3.
Bales, R. F. , Strodtbeck, F. L., Mills, T. M., & Roseborough, M. E. (1951). Channels of communication in small groups. American Sociological Review, 16, 461-468.
4.
Belle, D. (1989). Gender differences in children’s social networks and supports. In D. Belle (Ed.), Children’s social networks and social supports (pp. 173-188). New York: John Wiley.
5.
Benenson, J. F. (1990). Gender differences in social networks. Journal of Early Adolescence, 10(4), 472-495.
6.
Benenson, J. F. , Apostoleris, N. H., & Parnass, J. (1997). Age and sex differences in dyadic and group interaction. Developmental Psychology, 33(3), 538-543.
7.
Benenson, J. F. , Tricerri, M., & Hamerman, S. (1999). Characteristics of children who interact in groups versus dyads. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 160, 461-475.
8.
Broverman, I. K. , Broverman, D. M., Clarkson, F. E., Rosenkrantz, P. S., & Vogel, S. R. (1970). Sex-role stereotypes and clinical judgments of mental health. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 34(1), 1-7.
9.
Campbell, A. (1999). Staying alive: Evolution, culture and women’s intra-sexual aggression. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 22, 203-252.
10.
Crick, N. R. , & Grotpeter, J. K. (1995). Relational aggression, gender, and social-psychological adjustment. Child Development, 66, 710-722.
11.
Freedman, D. G. (1974). Human infancy. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
12.
Goodwin, M. H. (1990). He said-She said. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
13.
Johnson-Laird, P. N. (1983). Mental models. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
14.
Jordan, J. V. , Kaplan, A. G., Miller, J. B., Stiver, I. P., & Surrey, J. L. (Eds.). (1991). Women’s growth in connection. New York: Guilford.
15.
Ladd, G. W. (1983). Social network of popular, average and rejected children in school settings. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 29, 283-307.
16.
Lever, J. (1978). Sex differences in the complexity of children’s play and games. American Sociological Review, 43, 471-483.
17.
Maccoby, E. E. (1988). Gender as a social category. Developmental Psychology, 24(6), 755-765.
18.
Maccoby, E. E. (1990). Gender and relationships. American Psychologist, 45(4), 513-520.
19.
Maccoby, E. E. (1998). The two sexes: Growing up apart, coming together. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
20.
Maltz, D. N. , & Borker, R. A. (1983). A cultural approach to male-female miscommunication. In J. J. Gumperz (Ed.), Language and social identity (pp. 196-216). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
21.
Markovits, H. , Benenson, J., & Dolenzsky, E. (in press). Evidence that children and adolescents have internal models of social interactions that are gender differentiated. Child Development.
22.
Omark, D. , Strayer, F. F., & Freedman, D. G. (Eds.). (1980). Dominance relations. New York: Garland.
23.
Pitcher, E. G. , & Schultz, L. H. (1983). Boys and girls at play: The development of sex roles. New York: Praeger.
24.
Savin-Williams, R. C. (1979). Dominance hierarchies in groups of early adolescents. Child Development, 50, 923-935.
25.
Savin-Williams, R. C. (1980). Social interactions of adolescent females in natural groups. In H. C. Foot, A. J. Chapman, & J. R. Smith (Eds.), Friendship and social relations in children (pp. 343-364). New York: John Wiley.
26.
Slater, P. E. (1958). Contrasting correlates of group size. Sociometry, 21, 129-139.
27.
Tannen, D. (1990). You just don’t understand. New York: Ballantine.
28.
Thorne, B. , & Luria, Z. (1986). Sexuality and gender in children’s daily worlds. Social Problems, 33, 176-190.
29.
Trivers, R. (1972). Sexual selection and natural selection. In B. Campbell (Ed.), Sexual selection and the descent of man (pp. 87-104). Chicago: Aldine.
30.
Von Hecker, U. (1997). How do logical inference rules help construct social mental models?Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 33, 367-400.
31.
Weisfeld, G. E. , Omark, D. R., & Cronin, C. L. (1980). A longitudinal and cross-sectional study of dominance in boys. In D. R. Omark, F. F. Strayer, & D. G. Freedman (Eds.), Dominance relations (pp. 205-216). New York: Garland.
32.
Whiting, B. B. , & Edwards, C. P. (1988). Children of different worlds: The formation of social behavior. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
